CloseDonald Trump said security guarantees for Ukraine were nearly finalised, with talks “close to 95 per cent” complete, even as he warned that “thorny issues” remained unresolved.
A key unresolved issue was the control of territory in the Donbas region, he said after talks with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky in Florida on Sunday.
Zelensky, however, claimed that security guarantees between the US and Ukraine were “100 per cent agreed” while the arrangement between the US, Europe and Ukraine was “almost agreed”.
Trump revealed that he had spoken to Russian leader Vladimir Putin ahead of the crunch talks with Zelensky on the 20-point peace plan.
A Kremlin spokesperson said Trump and Putin did not want a temporary ceasefire ahead of any agreement and urged Ukraine to make a decision over the contested Donbas region.
This came after Moscow warned that any European troops deployed to Ukraine would become legitimate targets for its armed forces.
Putin, meanwhile, said Russia would accomplish all its goals by force if Ukraine didn’t want to resolve the conflict peacefully.
Trump says Ukraine security deal ‘close to 95%’ done
Donald Trump said security guarantees for Ukraine were nearly finalised, with talks “close to 95 per cent” complete.
He admitted, however, that some “thorny issues”, especially the control of territory in the eastern Donbas region, remained unresolved.
Trump was speaking after hosting Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky in Florida for talks, which both described as productive.
Further US-Ukraine talks are set for next week.
Maroosha Muzaffar29 December 2025 04:15
Russian submarine followed spy ship into British waters as it mapped gas pipeline
A Russian submarine was deployed alongside a spy ship to map critical undersea infrastructure around Britain, it has emerged.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has declassified a photo of the incident, which saw a submarine shadowing the Yantar, officially described as a Russian research ship, as it reportedly surveyed the gas pipeline linking Britain and Ireland. It was not clear whether the escort was one of Russia’s own purpose-built sabotage submarines.
An anti-submarine Merlin Mk2 helicopter could be seen from the photo tracking the Yantar in the Irish Sea from November last year; a British submarine also emerged from the surface nearby.
It is believed to be one of several operations where Russian submarines have accompanied the Yantar into waters close to the British Isles, according to The Sunday Times.
The Independent’s Bryony Gooch has this story:
Russian submarine followed spy ship into British waters as it mapped gas pipeline
The Royal Navy chief said earlier this month that the UK had seen a 30 per cent rise in Russian incursions in UK waters over two yearsNicole Wootton-Cane29 December 2025 04:00
Watch: Trump says ‘we’ll get it done’ and shakes hands with Zelensky ahead of peace talks in Florida
Nicole Wootton-Cane29 December 2025 03:00
Putin critic sentenced to six years in prison by Russian court
A Russian court has sentenced a pro-war activist and critic of President Vladimir Putin to to six years in prison on Thursday.
Sergei Udaltsov is the leader of the Left Front movement that opposes Putin and is also affiliated with the Communist Party.
He was arrested in 2024 and accused of justifying terrorism.
You can read more below:
Putin critic sentenced to six years in prison by Russian court
Sergei Udaltsov was sentenced to six years in jail Nicole Wootton-Cane29 December 2025 02:00
Ukraine is leveraging its powerful – and cheap – new drone killers for air defence
Ukraine is leveraging its powerful – and cheap – new drone killers for air defence
Ukraine is rapidly deploying low-cost interceptor drones to counter Russia’s evolving aerial attacks on cities and power infrastructureNicole Wootton-Cane29 December 2025 01:00
Analysis: Trump uses Zelensky peace talks to indulge in conspiracy theories about 2020 election and the ‘Russia hoax’
Even as he tried to boast once again Sunday about his supposed record of peacemaking, it is becoming increasingly possible that Trump’s very public refusal to give up his hurt feelings could make a solution — or the political will to enact it — all the more difficult.
Trump uses Zelensky peace talks to indulge in conspiracy theories about 2020 election
Trump still can’t stop talking about 2020 when Zelensky is in the room. John Bowden ponders: Will that make dragging Putin to the table impossible?John Bowden29 December 2025 00:21
Russia wants to build a nuclear power plant on the moon in the next few years
Russia is reportedly planning to establish a nuclear power plant on the moon within the next decade.
This ambitious project aims to supply energy for its lunar space programme and a joint research station with China, as global powers intensify their efforts in lunar exploration.
You can read more below:
Russia plans to build a nuclear power plant on the moon in the next few years
Project aims to supply energy for its lunar space programmeNicole Wootton-Cane29 December 2025 00:00
Trump hails ‘terrific’ Ukraine peace plan meeting with Zelensky and claims ‘a lot of progress’ made
You can read the full report from today’s events below:
Trump hails ‘terrific’ Ukraine peace plan meeting with Zelensky
US president Donald Trump said there were a few ‘thorny issues’ that remainedNicole Wootton-Cane28 December 2025 23:45
Washington and Kyiv will speak again next week, Zelensky says
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he and President Donald Trump made significant progress in talks, and agreed that US and Ukrainian teams would meet next week to finalise issues aimed at ending Russia’s war in Ukraine.
“We had a substantive conversation on all issues and highly value the progress that the Ukrainian and American teams have made over the past weeks,” Mr Zelensky said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app.
Nicole Wootton-Cane28 December 2025 23:37
Putin envoy says world appreciates Trump peace efforts after Zelensky talks
The world appreciates Donald Trump’s peace efforts, Russian President Vladimir Putin's special envoy Kirill Dmitriev said on X early on Monday after the US president met for peace talks with President Zelensky.
“The whole world appreciates President Trump and his team’s peace efforts,” Mr Dmitriev, Russia's special envoy for investment and economic cooperation with foreign countries, wrote on X.
